


And I Burn Contently

by KatyaMorrigan



Category: Heartstopper (Webcomic)
Genre: Bonfire Night, Boyfriends, Cold Weather, Guy Fawkes Night, Holding Hands, Kissing, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-23
Updated: 2020-11-23
Packaged: 2021-03-09 22:20:18
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,085
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27683431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KatyaMorrigan/pseuds/KatyaMorrigan
Summary: It is the 5th of November, and Nick is joining the Spring family for their village's Bonfire Night celebrations. He couldn't be more happy to spend time with Charlie. Just some wholesome autumnal joy for our favourite boys.
Relationships: Nicholas "Nick" Nelson/Charles "Charlie" Spring
Kudos: 24





	And I Burn Contently

**Author's Note:**

> Day 21 of my NaNoWriMo writing challenge this year - one oneshot a day, every day for the whole of November. I'm following the SOFTober 2020 prompts by @wafflesandkruge on Instagram to give me some fluffy starting points for the coming month of fics.  
> The prompt for today was "breath".  
> I hope you enjoy!

Nick knocked on Charlie’s door and stepped back, stamping his feet on the front step. It was already freezing, and the sun had only set half an hour ago. But then again, it was England in November. What else did he expect?

He saw movement behind the frosted glass, and the door opened. Charlie was stood there, in one of Nick’s hoodies, with a navy blue bobble hat on his head and a large woollen scarf wrapped around his neck. He looked completely adorable.

“Hey,” Nick said, grinning at his boyfriend. Charlie stepped out and threw his arms around Nick, pressing a quick kiss to his lips before leading him inside by the hand.

“Hi! Come in, you must be so cold out there. Mum’s got spare gloves and things if you need them, but you look pretty cosy as it is.”

“I knew it was going to be cold, don’t worry, I have all the essentials,” Nick said, walking into the Spring’s house. Tori was in the living room texting someone, and Oliver bounded up to Nick excitedly, his own scarf trailing on the floor behind him.

“Hi Nick!” Oliver said, bouncing on the spot. “Do you know what Guy Fawkes is?”

“No, tell me,” Nick said indulgently. Oliver practically wriggled with excitement.

“He tried to blow up Parliament so they cut him into little pieces and threw his guts on a fire!”

“Oliver!” Mrs Spring called out. “Don’t be disgusting!”

“It’s true, Mum!” Oliver protested. “They taught us in school and everything!”

“Come back in here and let Nick breathe for a moment,” his mum replied.

“Bye Nick!” Oliver said, running back into the kitchen. Charlie sighed and covered his eyes with a hand.

“I’m so sorry about him,” Charlie said, but Nick stopped him.

“Hey, you don’t need to apologise. I appreciate his enthusiasm.”

“That’s one way to put it,” Tori remarked from the sofa.

Charlie led Nick up to his bedroom, and they settled on the bed. Nick stretched out comfortably, looking around at the familiar décor, and spying something laid out over Charlie’s desk chair.

“Is that my hoodie?” he asked suspiciously.

“Um,” Charlie blushed. “It might be. I may have borrowed it the last time you came over and forgot to return it.”

“So you’re wearing one, and you have one as backup,” Nick teased, wrapping his arms around Charlie’s shoulders. “Do I get any for myself?”

“I promise I was going to give it back,” Charlie said, but he was grinning as he leaned into Nick’s embrace.

“I don’t believe you.”

“You should!”

“Why’s that?”

“Because I’m your boyfriend.”

Nick hummed, leaning around to look at Charlie’s face. He was still slightly flushed, and the warmth of all the knitwear was making the stray curls peeking out from under the hat stick to his forehead. Nick brushed them aside with one hand.

“That’s a good enough excuse for me.”

He leaned down and pecked Charlie on the lips. Charlie sat up, cupping Nick’s face in both hands and kissing him again. Nick adjusted his embrace, holding Charlie as closely as he could and feeling the swell of his chest as they breathed in time with each other. It was always so soft and easy to kiss Charlie, and pretty quickly they had fallen into their usual rhythms.

That was, until, there was another shout from the stairs.

“Charlie! Nick!” called Mr Spring. “It’s time to head out!”

They pulled away from each other with a pleased giggle, and Nick pressed a final kiss to Charlie’s forehead.

“We’re coming!” Charlie replied.

Hand in hand, they went downstairs together and joined the rest of the Spring family in the cramped hallway. Tori was helping Oliver put his shoes back on (they seemed to have been removed in the time that Nick had been upstairs) and Charlie’s parents were making sure the house was all locked up for them to leave.

“Got everything you might want?” Mr Spring asked Nick. “We have some spare torches if you want one for the walk to the playing field.”

“It’s okay, I have a torch on my phone.”

“Of course, I forget we have all-in-one technology,” Mr Spring chuckled. “I’ll leave you and Charlie be, you’re old enough to be safe around a bonfire. This one, however…”

“I want to watch the Guy burn up!” Oliver was cackling.

Nick and Charlie laughed as they followed everyone out of the house and began the walk up to the local playground. Really it was a large field with a slide and swing set that the local kids near Charlie’s house used mostly for make-believe games, but in the large green expanse there was a small dip in the ground that was loaded with logs each year for the annual Bonfire Night celebrations. There was little that went on near Nick’s house, so he had been invited by Charlie to join the Springs as they went up to enjoy the humble village offerings.

They walked hand in hand, with Charlie using his phone to light up the path ahead and steer them away from the puddles and muddy leaves lining the streets. As they approached, he pointed out the huge plumes of smoke coming from just above the trees that lined the field to Nick. Small sparks travelled up with the smoke, mirroring the stars which were already winking out in the dark sky.

“Hang on boys,” Mrs Spring said, “we’ll need to pay your admission.”

They slowed down to join the family group, and queued alongside them to go on. One of the local dads was running the entry, and offered glowsticks to the group.

“Shall we?” Charlie asked with a grin. Nick responded with a laugh.

“Definitely.”

Nick picked a green glowstick which he could snap into a ring and wear around his neck like a huge neon dog collar. Charlie went for a blue one, and he started swishing it in the air like a wand. It left bright tracks as it moved, and Charlie giggled in delight.

“Sometimes I think I like Bonfire Night even more than Halloween,” he said.

“You take that back,” Nick grinned.

They wandered into the field, and Nick stopped just to take in the surroundings. Fairy lights had been strung up along the trees and all over the play equipment, which was not stopping a gaggle of young children from playing on them. A barbeque had been set up, and a delicious smell of burgers and sausages filled the air with the smoke of the bonfire. Safety tape had been set up around the bonfire, and a few parents were explaining to their crying children why they weren’t allowed to go closer.

“Only the finest that Truham can offer,” Charlie said with raised eyebrows.

“It’s really cute,” Nick replied, taking Charlie’s hand again. “This is fun.” Charlie gave him a broad smile, and leaned against his shoulder for a moment. There was a pause before he pulled away and looked up at Nick.

“Um, how do you feel about the touching?” Charlie asked apprehensively. “I think everyone here will be okay about it, but I don’t know how comfortable you are around a group of strangers who just kinda live near me and I don’t want to push you if it’s not—”

“It’s okay with me,” Nick smiled.

“Are you sure?”

“Absolutely.”

Charlie sighed and leaned against him again.

“Can I go get a hotdog?” Nick asked. “I’m hungry and they smell delicious.”

“Sure, I’ll go get Mum and grab some money.”

They went back to find Mrs Spring, who was talking to some of Charlie’s neighbours with his father, and she gave them enough for both of them to have something.

“Do you want one?” Nick asked as they queued up.

“Um, not really.” Charlie shifted on his feet. “They smell good though. Would you mind if I maybe just had a bite of yours, to taste?”

“Not at all. So long as you don’t mind onions and mustard.”

“I’m good with onions and mustard.”

Nick bought a hotdog and added all the toppings, taking a big bite and having to catch a squeeze of sauce as it fell from the end of the bun. He gave a laugh through the mouthful of hotdog and swallowed it quickly.

“It’s really good,” he said. “Take a bite now before I eat all of it.”

Charlie giggled and took a little bite from the side. He made appreciative noises as he handed it back to Nick, who continued eating.

“Okay yeah, those are good.”

They found a bench further back from the bonfire and sat together, legs pressed against each other as Nick finished up his hotdog and wiped his greasy fingers on the napkin.

“You’ve got a bit of mustard there,” Charlie said, pointing to the corner of Nick’s mouth.

“Where?” He tried to rub at his face, but Charlie shook his head.

“Hang on,” Charlie murmured, leaning forwards and kissing Nick on the corner of the mouth. “There you go.”

Nick blushed and was about to say something sweet when Charlie pulled a face and stuck his tongue out.

“Ach, that was a bad idea. Too much mustard.”

They both laughed, Charlie wincing as he closed his mouth.

“Spicy kisses not a good idea, then?”

“No, I’m not about those.”

Their chuckles quietened, and Nick put his arm around Charlie’s shoulder again. Charlie snuggled against him, and they watched the smoke rise from the bonfire and join up with the night sky.

“When do the fireworks start?” Nick asked.

“Six, I think. What time is it now?”

Nick slid his phone out of his pocket and checked.

“Okay, it’ll be any minute now.”

“Want to go closer to the bonfire?”

“Yes please.”

Charlie got up first and reached out to Nick, holding both of his hands and trying to pull him up from the bench with much groaning and. Nick laughed and just stood up. They wandered further up the field and joined the crowd which had amassed a short distance from the safety tape. Some more volunteers wearing high-vis jackets were setting up the fireworks on the grass, and Charlie gasped as one of them ran back from a canister.

“It’s starting!” he said excitedly, grabbing Nick’s hand. Nick squeezed it tightly.

A rocket whooshed upwards with a ripping noise, casting a warm trail in the cold air. Nick realised he could see his own breath in front of him as he watched in anticipation, cheering as the first firework exploded in a riot of gold and red.

“They’re still so fun even when you get older,” he remarked, turning to look at Charlie. Charlie was watching as more fireworks went up, his eyes sparkling with the colours of each explosion and lighting up his face for brief moments. Nick could see the pure joy on his boyfriend’s face, and smiled as he turned back to watch the display.

For a small village event, they had not skimped on the spending for the fireworks. There were Catherine wheels and short towers that send up puffs of green light reaching a few feet into the air before tumbling to the ground, as well as the huge traditional fireworks that bloomed like flowers on the dark sky. Nick found himself enthralled by the display, even more than he had expected to be, and couldn’t take his eyes away. That being said, he did frequently look back at Charlie just to see the excitement on his face and the way his blue eyes shone brighter with the explosions so far above them.

Charlie caught him looking, and gave an embarrassed smile. He leaned up and pecked Nick on the cheek before turning back to looking at the fireworks.

“May I have a proper kiss?” Nick asked, quietly enough that the people around them probably wouldn’t hear. Charlie looked back with another pleased grin.

“Yes.”

He put a hand on Nick’s cheek and stood up on tiptoes, kissing him softly as the fireworks bloomed above them. Nick could still faintly see the colours through his eyelids, but now the boom of the explosions was the only thing he could feel apart from Charlie’s soft lips, his gloved hand on his face, and the soft warm breath on his cheeks.

That had to be the perfect way to spend Bonfire Night. Full of delicious food, kissing his beautiful boyfriend, in front of a sky shining with every colour under the sun.

**Author's Note:**

> I love just letting these boys be soft together, it is one of my favourite things to write and we all need some cute autumn content in these trying times. I missed not having my village's Bonfire Night this year, so I definitely just wrote some wish fulfillment in that respect, but also Nick and Charlie all bundled up for cold weather and getting to experience things like this together? The best. I hope you enjoyed it.
> 
> The next prompt is "push", and will be... something. I'll decide later.


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